Boeing

The Boeing Company and Lufthansa today celebrated an effort that has improved reliability of the airline's 747-400 fleet to more than 98 percent.

Lufthansa and Boeing assigned key engineers to a reliability improvement team two years ago to obtain a 2 percent increase in the airline's 747-400 fleet dispatch reliability. The goal was met, and the Lufthansa 747-400 fleet has maintained this increased level of reliability for more than six months.

"We are committed to Lufthansa's success by providing dependable support and outstanding customer service," said John Banbury, vice president of Technical Services for Commercial Aviation Services.

Banbury said that to continue to enhance the reliability of the 747-400 fleet, Boeing and its customers utilize the Fleet Team Resolution Process®, which Lufthansa and Boeing developed four years ago. The Fleet Team concept now has become the standard for working together between Boeing and its operators.

"This program helps to quickly resolve in-service issues to improve the overall health of an airline's fleet," Banbury said.

Hans-Juergen Loss, vice president of Operations at Lufthansa, said 747 dispatch reliability has greatly improved through the joint program.

"Our fleet runs very efficiently with high reliability, outperforming the cabin standard on a daily basis," he said. "The cooperation in the partnership triangle of Boeing, our maintenance and our operation resulted in a good value for our business and our customers."

Lufthansa is an active participant and member of the Fleet Team steering committee, working with Boeing to identify and develop recommendations to resolve common technical and operational issues for the 747 airplane.

The program began in 1999 and now includes an on-line, interactive bulletin board used by Boeing and airlines to communicate in-service issues and define cost-effective solutions that benefit the fleet. Lufthansa operates 30 747-400s, two 747-200s and eight 747 Freighters.